2010-2012 Board of Trustees
President – Kathleen Bennett Tonkel (Eta/Michigan)
Vice President – Jill Pedicord Peterson (Beta Gamma/Colorado State)
Secretary – Kim Harvey Looney (Delta Pi/Tennessee)
Mary Ellen Kutsenda Fitzsimonds (Beta Kappa/Drake)
Victoria Laughlin McCluggage (Omicron/Southern California)
Dinah Hampton McClymonds (Alpha Omicron/Oklahoma)
Lisa Davis Olney (Delta Epsilon/Arizona State)
Elizabeth M. Prosser (Alpha Omicron/Oklahoma)
Lyn Stewart Simensen (Gamma Gamma/Rollins)
Amy Hayner Kates (Alphi Phi/Tulane)
Laura Ware Doerre (Delta Xi/North Carolina)
Kathleen (Kathy) Bennett Tonkel
Eta/Michigan
President
- Presides, as president, at all meetings of the Board of Trustees, exercises general executive and supervisory authority over Theta Foundation affairs and its other officers, serves as a member of the Executive, Finance and Investment Committees, and sits as an ex-officio, non-voting member of Kappa Alpha Theta Fraternity Grand Council. She joined the Board of Trustees in 2001.
- Has served Theta Vice President Alumnae, Vice President Extension, a member of the NPC Extension Task Force, Director of Alumnae Programming, Alumnae District President, and college chapter advisor. She has been a member/officer of eight Theta alumnae chapters and is a current member of the Vero Beach Alumnae Chapter in Vero Beach, Florida.
- Is a member of Theta Foundation’s Tunicliffe Society and Presidents Circle.
- Is a sustainer in the Junior League, having been a member for 40 years. She has been a member and co-chair of the Grand Harbor Philanthropy Committee.
- Enjoysplaying bridge, traveling with her husband, Rock, and visiting and keeping up with their 10 grandchildren. Kathy grew up riding her horse, Blueboy, bareback in her bathing suit in the summers. And, in 1982, she won a rodeo competition in the barrel maze.
Jill Pedicord Peterson
Beta Gamma/Colorado State
Vice President, Finance and Investments Chair
- Oversees, as Finance and Investments Chair, Theta Foundation’s financials and investment funds. She joined the Board of Trustees in 2004.
- Has served Theta in numerous alumnae chapter roles, in addition to being in her fourth term of Trustee service. She is a member of the Denver Alumnae Chapter in Denver, Colorado.
- Is a member of Theta Foundation’s Presidents Circle.
- Is a sustainer in the Junior League, having been a member for 40 years. She has been a member and co-chair of the Grand Harbor Philanthropy Committee.
- Is a Senior Vice President with JPMorgan Chase providing wealth management—including investments, estate planning/trusts, banking, and lending—to her clients. Enjoys golf, working out, gardening, skiing and travelling! She is still working to organize her photos for the past 15+ years, is an avid reader, and cannot help but eat her way through Trader Joe’s market on each and every visit to Theta headquarters.
Kim Harvey Looney
Delta Pi/Tennessee
Secretary
- Joined the Board of Trustees in 2004.
- Has served Theta as Education Advisor, Alumnae Chapter President, Secretary and Treasurer, and chair of Bal d'Hiver, Nashville’s oldest charity ball. She is a member of the Nashville Alumnae Chapter in Nashville, Tennessee.
- Is a member of Theta Foundation’s Presidents Circle.
- Has assisted various charitable organizations in fundraising, including La Bella Notte, Opera Ball, Pizzazz, Dine by Design for the Junior League Show House, Holiday Project for Vanderbilt Children's Hospital, Paddock Club for Steeplechase benefitting Vanderbilt Children's Hospital. She is the past president of Heart Gala Board and a current member of the board of Franklin Road Academy. She is a member of the inaugural class of Leadership Law.
- Loves to read and travel. She has traveled with her husband and two sons to Spain, England, Italy, and France. She shares her love of Theta with her mother, aunt, and cousin’s daughter. And, she serves as the Board’s resident shopaholic.
Mary Ellen Kutsenda Fitzsimonds
Beta Kappa/Drake
Grants Chair
- Oversees Theta Foundation grants policy—including individual and chapter grants, Friendship Fund, educational and leadership grants to the Fraternity, the CASA grant, and other community grants—and the individual and chapter grants review committee. She joined the Board as Trustee 2010 following her previous two terms of ex-officio service as Fraternity Vice President Alumnae.
- Has served Theta as Alternate NPC Delegate, Alumnae District President, Alumnae District Officer, Director of Alumnae Education, Alumnae Chapter President, Secretary, Ways and Means Chair, Vice President Programs and Meals at Home Chair. She has been a member of the Chicago North Shore Alumnae Chapter in Chicago, Illinois for 22 years.
- Is a member of Theta Foundation’s Gerlach and Stockwell Society and Lambert Legacy Society.
- Is a licensed pharmacist, but is currently not practicing. She is busy volunteering with the College Career Center and Booster Club at the high school and serves as team Mom for the varsity boys golf team. She also serves as a Gold Award Advisor for area Girl Scouts. She has a Theta daughter at the Gamma Psi/TCU chapter and is an avid Horned Frog.
- Enjoys Da' Bears, Da' Cubs, Da' Hawks and Da' Bulls, as she is a life-long fan of these Chicago sports teams. When she is not cheering for her favorite team or volunteering, she can be found in dance or yoga class.
Victoria (Vicki) Laughlin McCluggage
Omicron/Southern California
Chapter Gifts Chair
- Oversees efforts with Kappa Alpha Theta college and alumnae chapters to facilitate chapter fundraising and giving. She returned to the Board of Trustees in 2010 after serving as a Trustee from 1990 to 1992.
- Has served Theta in several advisory roles for the Omicron/Southern California chapter including Advisory Board Chair, Alumnae Chapter President, College District President, and Facility Corporation President. She is currently a member of the Pasadena Alumnae Chapter in Pasadena, California.
- Is a member of Theta Foundation’s Gerlach and Stockwell Society and Tunnicliffe Society.
- Serves as a Los Angeles Philharmonic Board member, supporting community youth orchestra development, and was honored by the University of Southern California as a 2010 volunteer of the year.
- Shares her love of Theta with her daughter Mary (Omicron/Southern California) and her commitment to the fraternal community with her husband Kerry, a member of the Sigma Chi Foundation Board.
Dinah Hampton McClymonds
Alpha Omicron/Oklahoma
Major Gifts Chair
- Oversees large gifts policy and works with donors who wish to impact Theta through major gifts and endowments. She joined the Board of Trustees in 2008.
- Has served Theta as a member of four Theta alumnae chapters—including successfully chairing the major fundraiser for each chapter—and as Alumnae District Officer for South Texas. She is a member of the Houston Alumnae Chapter in Houston, Texas and volunteers for their annual Antiques Show and serves as chair of the Mah Jongg and Theta Day at the Movies groups.
- Is a member of Theta Foundation’s Presidents Circle and Gerlach and Stockwell Society.
- Has been involved with other charitable organizations, including Georgia CASA, the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, and DePelchin Children's Center, but says it's "all Theta all the time" at her house.
- Has, with her SAE husband John, two children, a Theta daughter who lives in New York City and a Kappa Alpha son who lives in Los Angeles . . . and they have generously shared Dinah with her Theta friends for decades! Dinah enjoys cross-country road trips, but is also looking for Thetas to visit in Paris, Rio, and Shanghai. Any takers?
Lisa Davis Olney
Delta Epsilon/Arizona State
Communication Chair
- Oversees communications strategy including publications, web site, social media, public relations and internal communication. She joined the Board of Trustees in 2010.
- Has served Theta as President and co-founder of the Westchester Alumnae Chapter and Alumnae District Officer. She is a member of the Westchester Alumnae Chapter in Westchester County, New York.
- Is a member of Theta Foundation’s Presidents Circle and Lambert Legacy Society.
- Is the fundraising chair for the O’Rourke Irish Dancers in White Plains, New York, and a card-carrying member of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London.
Elizabeth Prosser
Alpha Omicron/Oklahoma
Annual Fund Chair
- Joined the Board of Trustees in 2008.
- Has served Theta as Alumnae Chapter President and author of Alpha Omicron’s 100th anniversary history. She is a member of the Oklahoma City Alumnae Chapter in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
- Is a member of Theta Foundation’s Presidents Circle.
- Has been a member of the Harn Homestead board of directors and a banquet co-chair for Phi Beta Kappa. She participates in companion animal rescue, primarily with Animal Rescue Friends of Nichols Hills, since Oklahoma City’s May 1999 F-4 tornado. And she is active in Oklahoma Prairies DAR chapter, where she is currently regent and has been registrar, and has also pursued her passion for genealogy while identifying 22 and proving 8 Revolutionary ancestors.
- Describes herself, borrowing from Margaret Drabble, as “a voracious and prosetylizing reader.” She was raised in Oklahoma City, has masters degrees in European history and Communications and studied a year at the University of Dijon in France, on a Fulbright Fellowship. She helped open 19 restaurants in Westport, Connecticut before owning her own restaurant and catering company, Soup’s On, awarded two stars by New York Times restaurant reviewer Patricia Brooks. Elizabeth enjoys snow-shoeing in Alaska and can needlepoint with the best of them.
Lyn Stewart Simensen
Gamma Gamma/Rollins
Scholarship Chair
- Oversees Theta Foundation scholarship policy and the scholarship selection committee. She joined the Board of Trustees in 2008.
- Has served Theta as Facility Corporation President, Facility Corporation District Director, Fraternity Vice President Finance and Facilities, Alumnae District President, Facility Corporation Secretary, and Alumnae Chapter President and Founders Day Chair. She is a member of the Philadelphia Alumnae Chapter in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Sarasota Alumnae Chapter in Sarasota, Florida.
- Is a member of the Tunnicliffe Society and the Presidents Circle.
- Enjoys gardening, needlepoint, and traveling.
- Is currently enjoying setting up her new Florida home with her husband, John, and being retired from her "day job."
Amy Hayner Kates
Alpha Phi/Tulane
Ex-officio, Fraternity President
- Serves on the Board of Trustees as ex-officio member and on Theta Foundation’s Friendship Fund Committee. She joined the Board of Trustees in 2010.
- Has served Theta as Director of Risk Management, Vice President College, Vice President Membership, Facility Corporation Secretary, Alternate NPC Delegate, College District President, Educational Leadership Consultant, and Advisory Board Chair. She is a member of the New Orleans Alumnae Chapter in New Orleans, Louisiana.
- Is a member of Theta Foundation’s Founders Society.
- Has been a member of Junior League of Atlanta, a teacher for Phoenix and New Orleans Church Sunday school, president of Church Weekday school Board of Directors, and school room mother.
- Is part owner of Rope Access Technology USA and has two children—Maggie, 11, and Sam, 8—with her husband, Andy.
Laura Ware Doerre
Delta Xi/North Carolina
Ex-officio, Fraternity Vice President Alumnae
- Serves on the Board of Trustees as ex-officio member. She joined the Board of Trustees in 2010.
- Has served Theta as Director of Risk Management, Director of Risk Management Coordinator, multiple alumnae chapter offices including President of Houston NW Alumnae Chapter. She is a member of the Houston NW Alumnae Chapter in Houston, Texas.
- Is a member of Theta Foundation’s Presidents Circle.
- Is general counsel of Nabors Industries. She loves scrapbooking, travel, and shopping, and is president of her kids' fan club for their never-ending football and baseball "careers.”
